IBM ACE: Turning ideas into reality

The key benefits of using IBM ACE include:

• Reduced complexity in connecting applications and data across different environments
• Improved performance with up to 50% faster message processing times
• Greater scalability to meet changing business needs
• Enhanced productivity through a user-friendly interface and low-code development environment
• Comprehensive support for various integration styles and deployment options

Some of the key features of IBM ACE include:

• Integration of applications and data across hybrid cloud (public/private) environments.
• A graphical interface for building and managing integrations.
• Event-driven and API-led integration capabilities.
• Prebuilt connectors for common systems like Salesforce, SAP, and IBM MQ.
• Support for high-volume data transformations.

It’s important to understand that organisations of all sizes can benefit from IBM App Connect Enterprise. However, companies who require seamless integration of legacy systems, cloud applications, databases and APIs will benefit significantly.

As for roles within organisations, those who will benefit the most from implementing IBM ACE include:

• Operational managers: ACE enables quick implementation of new data requirements and format changes for the latest applications.
• IT and Cloud Managers: ACE simplifies management and maintenance by providing a single integration engine that runs across multiple platforms.
• Developers: The low-code development environment increases productivity, with specialised connectors and auto-discovery tools speeding up integration with known applications.

It’s both!

IBM App Connect Enterprise as a Service is fully managed and hosted on Amazon Web Services (AWS) and is now available through IBM Cloud Pak for Integration on Microsoft Azure marketplace.

Customers can try App Connect Enterprise as a Service free for 30 days by starting a trial. Two available price plans are based on runtime compute capacity (the number of virtual processor core hours that are needed) or resource units (the number of flow runs). Application connectors are also available in add-on packs of three. For more information, see AWS Marketplace and Microsoft Azure marketplace. Whilst IBM ACE pricing is provided on both marketplaces this reflects list price. By contacting your friendly business partner, such as DeeperThanBlue, more attractive and volume based pricing can be achieved.

IBM App Connect Enterprise software can be installed and configured on a physical machine running in your own Data Center, in a VMWare virtual machine, in a Docker image/container, as part of an IBM Cloud® Private or Red Hat® OpenShift® installation, or installed by you into a public cloud such as AWS or Microsoft Azure.

IBM ACE is particularly valuable for industries such as:

• Banking, Insurance and Finance Services
• Healthcare and Pharmaceuticals
• Retail and Logistics
• Manufacturing and Distribution
• Telco

IBM ACE supports a wide range of protocols and standards, including:

• REST
• SOAP
• HTTP
• FTP
• JMS
• MQ

It can also integrate with platforms like Salesforce, SAP, Oracle, AWS, Microsoft Azure, and IBM Cloud.

Yes. IBM ACE is capable of supporting real-time data integration through event-driven architecture, message queues and webhooks. It allows businesses to capture new events contextually and in near real-time, build workflows to orchestrate follow-on actions, and immediately react to new events.

IBM ACE can be utilised in multiple environments, including:

• On-premises
• Private or public cloud (AWS, Azure, IBM Cloud)
• Kubernetes and Docker containers
• Hybrid setups combining on-premises and cloud deployments

It is also suitable for use in a variety of integration scenarios, including:

• Building APIs by connecting and transforming data from multiple systems
• Synchronising data across different systems
• Creating event-driven architectures, including Internet of Things use cases
• Automating data copying and synchronisation between on-premises and cloud-based applications
• Exposing data assets as APIs

There’s no need to worry when using IBM App Connect Enterprise as it offers enterprise-grade security with features such as:

• Encryption, authorisation and authorisation to protect data in transit
• SSL/TLS Support
• Ability to add authentication and authorisation to all APIs
• Role-based access control
• Integration with other security tools (IBM QRadar)